t Will Be A “Long-Haul” Before Automated 18-Wheelers Are Road Ready

Self-driving vehicles are coming at some point, helped along with 5G and AI technology. Unions representing the trucking industry cite studies showing that autonomous 18-wheelers could eliminate up to 50,000 jobs, reported Fortune. Conversely, supporters of automated trucking technology claim it’s a remedy for growing shipping demands, greater safety on the road, and overall efficiency.

Unions believe automation means a negative impact on the job market, but experts say truck drivers won't be put out of work by robots. According to Fortune, human drivers will still need to be behind the wheel in cities and urban environments. What will change are the types of industry jobs available to workers. 

Advocates say if the tech is “good enough,” it could mean trucks will operate 24/7 as they criss-cross the country. Today, regulations limit human truck drivers to eight hours of work before taking a break and a maximum of 11 hours of daily drive time. 

Recruiting long-haul truckers has become increasingly difficult in recent years due to the "high-stress nature of the job, hours away from home, and safety hazards," notes the author. In 2021, there were 80,000 fewer drivers than would ideally be available to meet demand, according to the American Trucking Associations. Continue Reading

U.K. Trial Delivers Fiber to the Home Using Water Pipes

By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor

A trial deploying fiber optic cables via drinking water mains was launched this week in pipes in England with potential to connect up to 8,500 homes and businesses, as well as 5G antennas, according to the U.K. Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.  Negating the need to dig up roads, the trial promises to accelerate the rollout of broadband as fiber-optic cables are deployed through 10.5 miles of live drinking water mains between Barnsley and Penistone in northern England.   “Civil works, in particular installing new ducts and poles, can make up as much as four fifths of the costs to industry of building new gigabit-capable broadband networks,” Digital Infrastructure Minister Julia Lopez said in a press release. “The Fiber in Water scheme will demonstrate what could be a greener, quicker and more cost-effective way of connecting fiber optic cables to homes, businesses and mobile masts, without the disruption caused by digging up roads and land.” Continue Reading

House Gives Bipartisan Support to Two Telecom Bills

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

The House voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to pass two bills to strengthen communications networks and improve public health data. The measures now go to the Senate. Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) introduced H.R. 2501, the “Spectrum Coordination Act.” It would require the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the FCC to update their two-decade-old memorandum of understanding on spectrum coordination. According to the text, the legislation is meant to “(1) improve the process for resolving frequency allocation disputes in shared or adjacent spectrum bands, (2) ensure the efficient use of spectrum, and (3) establish reasonable timelines for information exchanges between the Administration and the Commission.” The House passed the measure by a vote of 418 to 6. Continue Reading

Ukrainian People Fight Isolation Without Cell Towers

By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor

Kyivstar, a mobile and internet service provider in Mariupol, located in southeast Ukraine, had 148 cell towers up and running when the Russians invaded the eastern European country. The wireless signals they transmitted were a critical lifeline, connecting loved ones and providing information to citizens. But working cell towers are becoming scarce. “One by one all these base stations went down,” Volodymyr Lutchenko, Kyivstar’s chief technology officer, told Wired Magazine. “First of all, because of the power connection, then because of the physical damage.” Now, with a death toll that stands at 5,000, and 90 percent of buildings damaged, 170,000 people in Mariupol are trapped, with no way to communicate to the outside world through traditional methods. But if the Ukrainians have taught the world anything, it is that they are a resourceful and resilient people. Using apps downloaded from the internet, they are communicating using the bluetooth signals on their cell phones to create mesh communications networks. Continue Reading

FCC Settles Verizon, PEPCO Pole Attachment Fight

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

Verizon Maryland and electric utility Potomac Edison Company (PEPCO) asked the FCC to review certain aspects of a November 2020 ruling. Back then, the Commission granted part of a complaint that Verizon filed concerning a Joint Use Agreement containing rates, terms and conditions for each party’s use of the other’s utility poles. Under the JUA, PEPCO charges Verizon rates that are “significantly higher” than the rates PEPCO charges competitive local exchange carriers and cable providers to attach to the same poles, according to the FCC. The carrier alleged the pole attachment rates it pays to PEPCO are unjust and unreasonable. The Commission agreed and prescribed a maximum rate PEPCO can charge Verizon in Maryland. It also said Verizon was due for a refund for a three-year period and told both to negotiate that. Verizon sought clarification on two points and PEPCO filed a Petition for Reconsideration. The agency granted part of what Verizon wanted but denied other portions of Verizon and all of PEPCO’s requests. Continue Reading

Tower Leasing Drought Ends as Spectrum Flows Out

By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor

The tower industry went through a number of years from 2014 to 2019, where leasing and tower builds were pretty slow, Bob Paige, Vertical Bridge Executive Vice President of Mergers and Acquisitions and Corporate Development, said during the Tower Panel presented by Vogue Towers at last week’s South Wireless Summit in Nashville. But that is over now. “Last year, we and the public tower companies had a record year.  We're certainly off to a good start this year as well,” Paige said. The formula for this uptick is simple, according to Paige. “When the carriers spend $120 billion on spectrum, which they did over the last three years, they are going to put the 180 MHz of spectrum that they acquired to work,” Paige said. Continue Reading

New FCC Broadband Maps Coming This Fall

By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel told lawmakers Thursday new agency broadband coverage maps will be ready this fall. The maps are key to NTIA’s distribution of $42.5 billion in broadband infrastructure grants. Rosenworcel and fellow Commissioners Brendan Carr, Geoffrey Starks and Nathan Simington testified before the House Communications and Technology Subcommittee. It was the first FCC oversight hearing in a year and a half, and the first since Rosenworcel was able to remove “interim” from her title.   Ranking Member Bob Latta (R-OH), asked Rosenworcel about the timing of the maps, noting that she told the Senate in March 2020 the agency could improve the maps within six months. Now, he said, the FCC says providers have been asked to submit their coverage information to the Commission by September 1. Continue Reading